Trunk



M .BRAY- Patented Feb. 22, 1887.

mIIIIIIIII.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

MELLEN BRAY, OF NEWTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

TRUNK.

SPECIFICATION forming part; of Letters Patent No. 358,012, dated February 22l 1887.

Application filed April 5, 1886.

To all whom, zt may concern:

Beit known that I, MELLEN BRAY, of N ew ton, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trunks, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specitication.

My invention relates to trunks, and particularly to that class of trunks which are made from sole-leather or similar material; and it consists in a trunk the sides, top, and ends of which are made of sole-leather and have secured thereto, by riveting, a series of strips of rawhide, solefleather, leatheroid, or similar material, having ribs or corrugations extending lengthwise of said strips, having the spaces formed by said corrugations, illed with pieces of wood or similar material,which will stiften said strips,and which maybe bent, but will not retain said bent position, all as will be readily understood by reference to the description of the drawings, and to the claim to be hereinafter given.

Of the drawings, Figure l represents aperspective View of a trunk embodying my invention. Fig. 2 represents a sectional plan of the same; and Fig. 3 represents a section of one of the stay-pieces and a portion of the side to which it is secured, said figure being drawn to an enlarged scale.

Sole-leather trunks as usually constructed are easily bent out of shape in consequence ot' the rough usage to which they are sometimes subjected, and as this is a very serious objection, on account of the liability of damaging the contents thereof, it has been found desirable to stiften the sides, ends, and top of trunks made in this manner, and to accomplish this obj ect is the aim ot' my present invention. l

The trunk A shown in the drawings is niade from sole-leather or similar material, in any usual manner, the joints, however, between the ends and the sides thereof being secured together, preferably by rivets. The

sides and ends of the box portion of the trunk, as also the outer surface of the cover thereof, have secured thereto a series of corrugated strips B of rawhide sole-leather leatheroid, or some similar material which is flexible, while at the same it has a certain degree Serial No. 197,821. (No model.)

of stiffness and elasticity. These strips B are secured to the sides of the trunk by the rivets a a, which are provided with suitable heads upon their outer ends, which bear upon the hat surfaces of said stri p between and outside of the corrugations b b, which extend the entire length of said strips, while the shanks of said rivets pass through the said strips and the side ofthe trunk, and are upset or clinched upon the inner surfaces of the s'ides ofthe trunk, and between which clinched end and the heads of the rivets the strips are securely clamped to the side of the trunk.

The ends of thetrunk A are provided with the handles C, of any usual construction.

By manufacturing trunks in this Inanner the soleleather' sides are greatly stitfened, and thereby prevented from being readily bent out of shape, while at the same time the co1'- rugations b b of the rawhide strips B,whic`n accomplish this object, also prevent the sides from being chafed and rubbed,and thus allows the trunk to present a handsome appearance for along ti me.

In orderto additionally strengthen the sides and ends ofthe trunk, l sometimes insert into the'spaees formed by the corrugations b b suitable filling-pieces c c,of rawhide,wood, or other comparatively stift' but somewhat elastic material, whereby the stiffness ofthe sides, ends, or top of the trunk is considerably in creased. y

\Vhat l claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

A trunk the shell of which is made of solcleather or other iiexible material, and the sides ot' which have secured thereto, by riveting,a series of longitudinally-corrugated stiffening strips, in combination with a series of tilling-pieces,ot' rawhide, wood, or similar material,inserted within the spaces between said strips and the shell of the trunk formed by said corrugations.

In testimony whereof [have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subseribing witnesses, on this 3d day of April, A. D. 1886.

MELLEN BRAY.

Witnesses:

N. C. LOMBARD, WALTER E. LOMBARD. 

